NEW AQUITAINE REGION
Departments: Charente, Charente-Maritime, Corrèze, Creuse, Dordogne, Gironde, Landes, Lot-et-Garonne, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Deux-Sèvres, Vienne, Haute-Vienne.
Population: 6.15 million.
Prefecture: Bordeaux
Area: 2,011 km2
Specialities: Bordeaux wines, Cognac, Armagnac, Espelette pepper, Périgord walnuts, Marmande tomatoes, Arcachon Bay oysters, Salers beef, Aquitaine blonde cattle, Bayonne ham, Pauillac lamb, Bordeaux canelés. Goose, duck, Sarladaise potatoes, Basque chicken, garbure soup, lamprey. Black truffles.
Sports clubs: Girondins de Bordeaux (football), Stade Montois, Union Sportive Dacquoise, Aviron Bayonnais, Union Bordeaux Bègles Atlantique, Stade Rochelais, CA Brive Corrèze Limousin, Section Paloise, Biarritz Olympique, SU Agen (rugby), Elan Béarnais Pau-Orthez, CSP Limoges (basketball).
Competitions: Tour de France, surfing in Lacanau (Lacanau Pro) and Biarritz. Tour du Limousin.
Festivals: Bayonne Festival, Dax Festival, Madeleine Festival in Mont-de-Marsan, Francofolies de la Rochelle, Angoulême International Comics Festival, Brive Book Fair, Nuits de nacre in Tulle, Grand Pavois de La Rochelle, Garorock in Marmande, Cognac Crime Film Festival.
Economy: Bordeaux wines, Cognac and Armagnac, aeronautics and space industry, biotechnology, chemistry, scientific research. Image and digital sector. Agri-food. Port of Bordeaux. Tourism. Universities.
Tourist attractions: Bordeaux, Saint-Émilion, La Rochelle, Biarritz, Arcachon Bay, Dune du Pilat, Lascaux caves, Futuroscope in Poitiers, beaches in Lacanau, Biarritz, Biscarosse, Hourtin, Carcans, Soulac-sur-Mer, Gironde estuary, Bordeaux vineyards, Dordogne châteaux, Château de Pau, Pyrenees, Île d'Oléron, Île de Ré.
Websites and social media:www.nouvelle-aquitaine.fr
CORREZE (19)
Population: 240,826
Prefecture: Tulle
Sub-prefectures: Brive, Ussel
Area: 5,857 km
Specialities: Maugein accordions, Le Corrèze knives, Travassac slates, Le Tanneur leather goods, Sothys beauty products, Salers aperitif, Denoix distillery, "Le Miel des Muses" straw wine, chestnuts, Beaulieu strawberries, ceps and truffles, walnuts, Limousin PDO apples, suckling veal, Limousin beef, etc.
Sports clubs: CABC Corrèze rugby club
Competitions: Aquaterra Trail, Tulle-Brive-Nature Trail, Bugeat-Monédières Raidlight Trail, Xtrail Dordogne, French Canoe-Kayak Championships on the Vézère, Dordogne Integral Canoe-Kayak on the Dordogne, Kenny Festival (motorcycling), horse riding competition in Pompadour, etc.
Festivals: Brive Festival (contemporary music), Festival de la Vézère (classical music/opera), Festival de Saint-Robert (classical music), Festival de Chanteix (contemporary music), Festival de Sédières, Brive Book Fair...
Economy: agriculture, forestry, hydroelectricity with dams, tourism, agri-food industry , advanced mechanics/electronics, etc.
Notable sites: Lake Viam (Millevaches Regional Nature Park), Bugeat (1000 Sources sports centre), Gallo-Roman site of Les Cars, Longeyroux peat bog, village of Meymac, etc.
Websites / FB / Twitter:www.correze.fr /www.facebook.com/departementcorreze /www.tourismecorreze.com /www.facebook.com/correzetourisme / twitter.com/correzetourisme / instagram.com/correzetourisme
Km 0.1
Brive-la-Gaillarde (Pop. 47,000)
From its Gallo-Roman origins to its heroic resistance during the Hundred Years' War, through the prosperous periods of the Renaissance and industrialisation, Brive has evolved while preserving its Corrèze identity. Founded in the 1st century BC by the Romans around a bridge over the Corrèze River – Brive means bridge in Celtic – the sub-prefecture of the eponymous department has become its main economic hub. The town developed around its agricultural fairs, attracting traders and craftsmen. Local products and goods from all over Europe were traded there. In the 14th century, the city endured the tumultuous Hundred Years' War and valiantly resisted English attacks, becoming a symbol of French resistance. This difficult period forged the city's tenacious character, and it later adopted the epithet "La Gaillarde" in recognition of its bravery.
The city is particularly well known for its Book Fair, one of the most popular literary events in France.
A rugby stronghold, it saw its club, CA Brive, win the European Cup in 1997, and has produced rugby stars such as Amédée Domenech, Pierre Villepreux, Cédric Heymans, Dimitri Yachvili and Damien Penaud.
Brive has a long history with the Tour de France, with six finishes and eight starts since the Second World War. However, the race has not visited it since 2012 and Mark Cavendish's victory in the city. The sub-prefecture of Corrèze has also served three times as a launch pad for the Puy de Dôme, where Julio Jimenez won in 1964 (the day of the famous duel between Jacques Anquetil and Raymond Poulidor), Pierre Matignon in 1969 and Luis Ocana in 1973. Brive is also a regular stage town for the Tour du Limousin.
Book Fair
The Brive Book Fair is a literary event held every year in the first half of November. It is considered the second most important literary festival after the Paris Book Fair. The Brive Book Fair is an opportunity to award several literary prizes, including the French Language Prize. Founded in 1973, the Book Fair really took off in 1982, when Jean d'Ormesson was its president. In 1985, the "Train du Livre" was created, transporting authors from Paris Austerlitz station to Brive with tastings of local specialities on board. Academician Erik Orsenna nicknamed Brive-la-Gaillarde "Cholesterol City" after his visit to the fair. The Goncourt jury also moved there the same year and announced the prize there until 1995. Since then, the cream of French literature has gathered there every year: in 2024, 170 publishing houses and more than 400 authors were in attendance.
Saint-Martin Collegiate Church
Construction: 11th to 19th centuries.
Style: Romanesque, Gothic and Neo-Romanesque.
History: Saint-Martin Church was founded in honour of Saint Martin the Spaniard, who was martyred and died in Brive in the 5th century. The first building is mentioned by Gregory of Tours. Excavations have confirmed his description: a rectangular chapel 11 to 12 metres long and 5 metres wide. The saint's tomb was in the north-east corner, with the altar next to it, facing east. After being enlarged, the church was managed at the end of the 11th century by a college of canons who adopted the Rule of Saint Augustine. The canons abandoned communal life in 1574 but continued to provide divine service until the second half of the 18th century. The cloister was destroyed in 1764, then during the Revolution, the convent buildings were acquired by the town and destroyed in 1835. The church became a parish church.
Listed as: historic monument in 1862. Tour des Échevins
Construction: 16th to 19th centuries.
Style: Renaissance.
History: the house was built around 1500-1520 in Grammont sandstone. A turret with remarkable early Renaissance decoration on Rue des Échevins and a turret on Rue du Lieutenant-Colonel-Farro remain. The house was inhabited by Antoine Delbos, advisor to the King's Grand Council by provisions of 28 March 1787. He was the father of Joseph Antoine Nicolas Dubousquet-Laborderie (1793-1864), sub-prefect of Brive in 1830, elected deputy of Corrèze on 23 April 1848. In the 19th century, the façades on Rue des Échevins, Place Charles-de-Gaulle and Place Latreille (Rue du Lieutenant-Colonel-Farro) were modified. The wall between the tower and the neighbouring house, which was in danger of collapsing, was rebuilt in 1840. The entire complex was restored and modified in 1921.
Listed as: historic monument in 1889. Lablenche Museum
Construction: 16th century.
Opening: 1883.
Style: Renaissance.
History: the Hôtel Labenche was built around 1540 by Jean de Calvimont, Lord of Labenche, in a beautiful Renaissance style. He was Keeper of the Seals and Clerk to the King for Lower Limousin. The municipal museum was founded in 1879 in the former Clarisses convent and moved to the Hôtel Labenche in 1989 after the building was restored. From the outset, the museum has been multidisciplinary, with a large natural history section and archaeological, fine art, numismatic and ethnographic collections. The museum has seventeen rooms housing permanent collections and temporary exhibitions on the history of Brive and Corrèze, as well as 17th-century English tapestries and natural history collections. It has a collection of ten tapestries made by the Royal Manufactory of Mortlake, which is unique in France.
Listed as: historic monument in 1886. Museum of France.
Km 11.7
Turenne (Pop: 800)
Having become one of the largest fiefdoms in France in the 14th century, the Viscounty of Turenne enjoyed complete autonomy from the Middle Ages to the 18th century. Until 1738, the viscounty formed a state within a state, which did not pay taxes to the king. In 1738, Turenne was sold to Louis XV to repay the gambling debts of Charles-Godefroy, the last of the viscounts of the La Tour d'Auvergne family. This marked the end of the near-independence of the last French fiefdom. Louis XV then ordered the dismantling of the fortress.
Its ruins still dominate the village and are listed as a historic monument, as is its collegiate church. Turenne is listed as one of the most beautiful villages in France.
Turenne Castle
Construction: 13th to 15th century.
Style: fortified castle.
History: the château was built on a rocky outcrop rising above the village. All that remains is a round tower known as the Caesar’s Tower and a rectangular keep known as the Tour de l'Horloge or Tour du Trésor, both connected by masonry. It was the castle of the Viscounts of Turenne, who ruled with quasi-autonomy from the 10th to the 18th century.
Listed as: historic monument in 1840, 1890 and 2015. Saint Paul's Church
Construction: 17th century.
Style: Gothic.
History: the first parish church, within the castle walls, was destroyed during the Wars of Religion in 1575. Reconstruction of the new church began in 1593 and was completed in 1661. The Latin cross-shaped building has a bell tower porch to the west, a nave with four bays, a flat-ended chancel and two identical chapels to the north and south. Above the transept square is a small polygonal lantern with a domed roof, topped by a smaller conical roof. A polygonal spire with two superimposed upturned eaves rises from the bell tower.
Listed as: historic monument in 1987.
Km 21.4
Collonges-la-Rouge (Pop. 480)
Left devastated in the 19th century after the phylloxera epidemic, Collonges-la-Rouge gradually rose from the ashes in the 20th century to become one of the jewels of French rural heritage and one of the most visited sites in Corrèze. The village owes this renaissance to its mayor, Charles Ceyrac. In the early 1980s, Collonges, like many rural communities in France, was suffering from agricultural decline and depopulation. The Corrèze politician was unwilling to accept this economic decline, which threatened to wipe out a heritage that was as exceptional as it was little known. The impetus for his fight came in the form of a book he discovered in the window of a Parisian bookshop: Les Plus beaux villages de France (The Most Beautiful Villages of France), published by Reader's Digest. Charles Ceyrac wrote to the mayors of the hundred or so villages featured in the book. Sixty-six responded to his call and, on 6 March 1982 in Salers (Cantal), they created the association Les Plus beaux villages de France. Throughout the country and soon beyond, people discovered that the countryside was home to treasures of heritage and architecture. Since then, Collonges-la-Rouge has remained the emblem of Corrèze and Les Plus Beaux Villages de France.
In 2023, Collonges-la-Rouge hosted the start of a stage of the Tour de France Femmes with Zwift, won in Montignac-Lascaux by Lorena Wiebes.
Maison de la Sirène (Mermaid House)
Construction: 16th century.
Style: Gothic
Characteristics: single-storey house with porch and covered passageway with a low arch, topped by a mullioned window, and first floor with corbelled section with exposed timber framing. The span of the Gothic entrance door (decorated with 15th-century mouldings) is punctuated by a band extended by vertical ribs ending in sculpted bases, the one on the right representing a mermaid holding a comb and a mirror, and the one on the left, much less well preserved, perhaps representing a man riding a dolphin.
Current use: headquarters of the Friends of Collonges association and museum of popular arts and traditions.
Listed as: historic monument in 1949. Saint-Pierre Church
Construction: 11th, 12th and 15th centuries.
Styles: Romanesque and Gothic
Characteristics: built around 1060-1070, enlarged from the 12th to the 15th century and fortified in the 16th century during the Wars of Religion. The bell tower, perhaps the oldest of the regional group of Limousin gabled bell towers, dates from the early 12th century. Two square floors are topped by two octagonal levels, with the transition from square to octagon concealed by the gables. The openings on the first two floors are emphasised by arches, pillars and columns with sculpted capitals. Sculpted tympanum.
Special features: much of the church's furnishings (altars, altarpieces, statues) are listed as historic monuments.
Listed as: Historic Monument in 1905.
Km 25.5
Meyssac (Pop. 1,310)
Several architectural treasures are clustered around the church and along the narrow streets lined with beautiful red sandstone houses, some of which have facades covered with vines. The red earth, known as "Collonges earth", is ideal for pottery. Today, tourists follow in the footsteps of the pilgrims who, from the 10th century onwards, made their way to Santiago de Compostela and Rocamadour. The rich and powerful viscountcy of Turenne led to the construction of manor houses, châteaux and other noble residences.
Its 18th-century grain market, Romanesque church of Saint-Vincent and the Maison Verdier, a Renaissance screw tower, are listed as historic monuments.
Km 28.3
Lagleygeolle (Pop. 220)
This is the birthplace of writer, actor and radio commentator Claude Duneton, winner of the Académie Française prize in 2006 for his entire body of work and member of the Conseil Supérieur de la Langue Française (High Council for the French Language). In 2004, he dedicated a novel to Lagleygeolle, where he has been laid to rest since his death in 2012.
Km 33.2
Beynat (Pop. 1,250)
From the mid-18th century until after the Second World War, Beynat was known for making shopping bags from wheat or rye straw. In 2007, an association revived this activity and in June 2016, a shopping bag museum was opened in the village. In addition, the dolmen known as Cabane des fées (Fairy Hut) is listed as a historic monument.
Km 59.3
Sainte-Fortunade (Pop. 1,800)
Sainte-Fortunade Castle
Construction: 15th century
History: it was built by the Lavaur de Sainte-Fortunade family, who still owned it until around 1950. The town hall purchased the château in 1952 to house municipal services. It features a round tower, a spiral staircase and monumental rooms. It is set in a 19th-century park with an orangery, now converted into a village hall.
Listed as: its façades and roofs were listed as historic monuments in 1997.
Km 65.8
Tulle (Pop. 13,400)
Nicknamed "the city of seven hills", Tulle built its reputation on the development of its industry and crafts: it became a centre for lace manufacturing (with its international festival), weapons (Manufacture d'armes) and accordions (Accordéons Maugein). Stretching over three kilometres in the Corrèze gorges, Tulle's old quarters are spread out on the hillsides overlooking the river, while the elegant stone bell tower of Notre-Dame Cathedral rises from the heart of the city. It is also the stronghold of former French President François Hollande.
The prefecture of Corrèze hosted the Tour de France in 1976, with Hubert Mathis winning by seven minutes ahead of the peloton, and twenty years later, Djamolidine Abdoujaparov won in a bunch sprint.
Notre-Dame Cathedral in Tulle
Construction: 12th century.
Style: Romanesque and Gothic.
History: In 1103, Abbot Guillaume de Carbonnières, wanting to give his abbey a setting worthy of it, had an abbey church and cloister buildings constructed. He was assisted by Pope Urban II, who was passing through Tulle. The diocese of Tulle was established in 1317, on the territory of Bas-Limousin, which was under the jurisdiction of the bishopric of Limoges. The abbey church was then promoted to cathedral status. In 1793, it was closed for worship. The building was looted and ransacked. The nave of the cathedral was returned to worship in 1805.
Characteristics: construction began according to a classic Benedictine plan. It changed from Romanesque to Gothic style, particularly the 13th-century cloister. Following the collapse of the dome at the transept crossing, the cathedral was reduced to a nave with six bays, flanked by aisles and closed at the east end by a straight wall. The pillars and aisles, with groin vaults, are Romanesque, while the ribbed vault of the nave is Gothic. Outside, the west portal in the Limousin style is decorated with a poly-lobed arch. The bell tower, topped by a long spire rising to a height of 73 metres, dates from the 13th and 14th centuries. It consists of three storeys topped by an octagonal spire, surrounded by graceful pinnacles.
Listed as: historic monument in 1862. Tulle Cloister
Construction: 13th to 19th century.
Style: Gothic.
History: the Tulle Cloister is one of the remaining parts of the buildings of the ancient Abbey of Saint-Martin-et-Saint-Michel. In 1819, the site became a departmental museum; the Tulle Cloister Museum was officially founded in 1893 by Émile Fage, president of the Corrèze Society of Letters, Sciences and Arts. The museum became municipal property in 1904 and housed collections reflecting the life, passions, discoveries and history of the people of Tulle and their region. Since 2024, the site and its collections have been part of the Cité de l'Accordéon et des Patrimoines de Tulle (Tulle Accordion and Heritage Centre).
Listed as: historic monument in 1862. Maison de Loyac
Construction: 16th century.
Style: Flamboyant Gothic.
Characteristics: formerly known as the abbot's house, it is the most remarkable civil building in Tulle. Each floor has a monumental sandstone fireplace with columns and mouldings, Gothic-inspired ceilings with exposed beams and moulded joists, and paintings.
Listed as: historic monument in 1927.
Km 77.4
Naves (Pop: 2,280)
During the Gallic period, the commune was located at the centre of a 30 km area comprising numerous gold and tin mines worked by the Lemovices. They also built a temple on the site of Tintignac. The village was located at the crossroads of the Roman roads between Armorica and Provence on one side, and Lugdunum and Burdigala on the other, which led to its prosperity and the construction of other temples, a theatre, thermal baths and many other buildings. In the 6th century, the site of Tintignac was abandoned and the settlement moved 1.5 km further south to the location of the current village. The village was built around a castle, of which only the Saint-Pierre church remains today.
Tintignac site
Construction: 1stcentury BC to 4th century AD.
History: Tintignac borders an ancient trade route known as the "metal road" because it was used to transport tin, a rare metal essential for the manufacture of bronze. Archaeologists believe that the Lemovices traded their metals with merchants travelling along this route. Under Emperor Hadrian, the site found itself at the crossroads of two important Roman roads. There were several phases of construction. The first seems to have been the Romanisation of the site, which was destroyed to please the new Roman rulers at the end of the 1st century BC. The second could correspond to the construction of the imperial road, which brought an influx of pilgrims, requiring the site to be enlarged. The third corresponds to the construction of the theatre and the heyday of Tintignac in the 3rd century. In the 4th century, the site of Tintignac was deliberately set on fire.
Characteristics: the site had a religious function, as a Gallic sanctuary was discovered there, replaced by a monumental Gallo-Roman religious complex (consisting of a fanum, a theatre, a semi-circular building and another building called a "tribunal with two basilicas" in the 19th century).
Special features: the site has yielded many remarkable objects, including seven carnyx (war trumpets). Its exploration is not yet complete, but it is open to visitors.
Listed as: historic monument in 1840.
Km 99.9
Chaumeil (Pop: 160)
Chaumeil is located on the lands of the former viscountcy of Ventadour, one of whose famous lords was Bernard de Ventadour. It has been the birthplace of many renowned accordionists, including Jean Ségurel, Robert Monédière and François Martini. In 1998, Hillary Clinton visited the village with Bernadette Chirac, who had been a member of the departmental council since 1979. They visited the Maison des Monédières, a local showcase for crafts and culture.
Chaumeil, often on the Paris-Corrèze and Tour du Limousin routes, also hosted a stage of the Tour de France in 1987, won solo by Martial Gayant.
Km 105
Suc au May (903 m)
The climb up Suc au May appeared for the first time on the parcours for the 12th stage of the 2020 Tour de France between Chauvigny and Sarran. Marc Hirschi was leading at the top.
Km 115.1
Le Lonzac (Pop. 820)
The former President of the European Commission, Jacques Delors (1925-2023), spent many summers in Le Lonzac, his father's birthplace. His daughter Martine Aubry, former Minister of Labour and former Mayor of Lille, also frequently visited the family home.
Km 121
Treignac (Pop. 1,260)
Nestled in a bend of the Vézère river between the Monédières Massif and the Millevaches Plateau, Treignac is a gateway town to the Millevaches Regional Nature Park in Limousin. This Petite Cité de Caractère (Small Town of Character) boasts a remarkable architectural and natural heritage: an old 13th-century bridge, churches and chapels, fountains, a grain market, a 15th-century panoramic tower and half-timbered houses. In this town with three churches, visitors can admire the twisted bell tower of the Notre-Dame-de-la-Paix Chapel. Near the Place de la République, the Chapelle des Pénitents occasionally hosts cultural events.
Bathed by the Vézère River, the village is renowned for its white water, making it a world-class canoeing and kayaking spot. The first canoeing and kayaking world championships were held here in 1959 and more recently in 2022.
Km 142.9
Bugeat (Pop. 720)
The town of Bugeat is known to French sports fans for its national sports training centre, now known as Espace 1000 Sources Alain-Mimoun, founded by Alain Mimoun, Olympic marathon champion in 1956. This centre is regularly used as a training ground for athletes from many disciplines (rugby, athletics, boxing, table tennis, etc.) preparing for international competitions.
Saint-Pardoux Church
Construction: 12th to 15th centuries.
History: the church was built in the Romanesque style and then underwent extensive modifications in the late 14th and early 15th centuries. The nave is flanked by two aisles. The first bay of the nave collapsed in the 18th century, leading to the reconstruction of the western portal, which bears the date 1768. The portal is topped by a bell tower with two bell bays, each equipped with a bell. The roof is topped by a lantern. The church features sculpted corbels and its stained-glass windows were made in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Listed as: partially listed as a historic monument in 1917.
Km 166.6
Meymac (Pop. 2,390)
The town developed around the Abbey of Saint-André de Meymac, founded in the 11th century and listed as a historic monument in 1840. French president Jacques Chirac was a member of the Meymac County Council in 1968 and 1979.
Saint-André Abbey in Meymac
Founded: 11th century.
Style: Romanesque.
Order: Benedictine.
History: legend has it that a hermit named Mamacus built a small church dedicated to Saint Andrew the Apostle in the 6th century. In 1085, Archibald III, Viscount of Comborn, founded the priory of Meymac, consisting of a few Benedictine monks. In 1146, thanks to the contribution of Eble II of Ventadorn, the priory became an abbey, around which one of the four main duchies of Ventadorn developed. In 1791, the last monks left the premises and the abbey was sold in successive lots. In the 19th century, it became a barracks, a hayloft and a stable. Until 1824, the abbey's existence was threatened, but after being noticed by Prosper Mérimée, it was placed on the list of historic monuments in 1840, and its renovation began in 1846.
Current use: today, the abbey houses the Marius-Vazeilles Museum (Marius-Vazeilles Museum of Archaeology and Heritage) in the wing adjoining the church and a contemporary art centre in the other wing (parallel to the church).
Listed as: historic monument in 1840.
Km 176.2
Saint-Angel (Pop. 700)
Saint-Michel-des-Anges Priory
Construction: 11th to 17th centuries.
History: the priory has existed since the 8th century. The abbey church dates from the 11th and 12th centuries. The chapter house and the round tower of the presbytery were added in the 14th and 15th centuries. In the 15th century, the priory suffered destruction and pillaging due to the Hundred Years' War and then the Wars of Religion. In the mid-17th century, the restoration of the monastery was entrusted to the Benedictines of Saint-Maur.
Listed as: historic monument in 1840 (abbey church), 1919 (chapter house and round tower) and 2000.
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